Journey Principles Radio: Throwbacks

It is our hope that the Journey Principles Podcast will help you grow and lead you toward the life you want with amazing guests, easy to apply practical principles, and personal motivation.
Stephen shares from his knowledge, his experiences, and most of all, his heart! He knows all about suffering and bears witness to how amazing life can be when we choose to take a stand and apply principles that matter. Many of these are the same principles that transcended him from being virtually homeless and ready to take his life to becoming a respected and successful business owner.
In a very transparent way, Stephen and his guests will walk you through the principles they have adopted into their lives and use daily. They will teach you how to transform from who you think you are today to becoming who you’re meant to be! It does not matter what kind of setbacks you have experienced so far. Stephen and his guests share from their personal, real-life journeys in order to empower you, the listener.

Welcome back Journey Principles Family! As promised we have Michele Cushatt back on the show today. She is sharing with us what it is like for the family during a time of struggle. During her battle with cancer she was both the hurting and the supporting. Her father passed away from pancreatic cancer during her time between two of her diagnosis. There is struggle to be had on both sides of the coin.

Anytime a major medical crisis, such as cancer, happens in a family it is disrupted. Our everyday life is turned upside down. The person hurting is battling physical pain, emotional turmoil as well as spiritual doubts. The supporting family members are also struggling with their emotions and possibly with spiritual doubts. It is tough during those times. But Michele shares three things that she learned during her time of struggle as the hurting and the supporting.

Commit and get through. Try not to make any important decisions during this time. Marriage is hard, raising children is hard, everything is harder during this time. Don’t give up. Nobody needs to pack their bags and leave. Commit to your family and get through this tough time together.

Have honest, open dialogue about what is needed; what is working and not working. There are people who have a tough time asking for help in general. When the entire family can see how each member is in their own struggle, it makes it more difficult to ask for help. We need to learn how to graciously receive help as well.

We need to realize that people aren’t going to always get it right. That is okay. In reality everyone is doing the best they can and during this time, the best isn’t always great. It can be hard to know what a suffering person might need. We must give everyone grace during this difficult time.

In between Michele’s first and second diagnosis, she wrote a book titled “Undone”. Eight months following her first diagnosis with cancer, her family grew by three. They took in three children who could no longer be cared for by their mother. It was wonderful and terrible timing all at the same time. On one hand, Michele and her husband were about to be empty nesters. Michele had just gone through her first battle with cancer and it just seemed like terrible timing from that standpoint. But from a divine standpoint, it couldn’t have been more perfectly orchestrated. These three children woke up each morning in an unpredictable environment, not knowing if they were safe. Michele woke up each morning with a similar feeling after having battled cancer. Their cancer journey prepared them to love these children who came from such an unexpected journey themselves.

Her book was finished by the time she was diagnosed with cancer the second and third time. She had to rewrite the epilogue three times because her story kept changing. Her book is coupled with a journal. Journaling was something that Michele did throughout her life off and on. Especially while she was battling her cancer, she would journal every day. She feels that we need to catalog our struggles and doubts. But not only that, we need to also write down our good and beautiful sources of joy. It is easy to lose sight of the gifts in life when we are in the middle of pain. We should take the time each day to write at least one reason we are thankful. Michele said that saved her in so many ways. It helped her get through that tough time as well as get through things now. It continues to build her faith. She can look back on that journal to see the proof and evidence in God’s faithfulness.

“Hunger drives desperation.” Michele wrote this in her book. She explains to us multiple meanings to that quote. From a physical standpoint, hunger drives desperation. She went 4 weeks without a single drop of water on her tongue. All her nutrition came from IVs and a feeding tube. It’s hard to imagine what that type of thirst is like. From an emotional standpoint, hunger drives desperation. When we have a hunger for something that we cannot fill, we become very desperate. We tend to fill that hunger with all the wrong things. When there is a need for love, approval, purpose, reassurance, etc., a person can be driven to become a very desperate person. There are so many things that are quick and easy fulfillments that we have access to. But the true fulfillment is having a relationship with God. Each time Michele tries to seek her own fulfillment in sometime besides God, he reels her back in.

Michele shares with us a very touching story about her son and one of his races. She learned two things that day her son ran in his first race.

It doesn’t matter where we finish in a race, it only matters that we finish. Her son had a difficult time in his first race. But the fact that he actually finished, meant so much to him.

Michele’s son asked her to stand two thirds of the way into the race. She was very puzzled by this request but did as he asked. When she saw him she could tell that he was on the brink of quitting. She started to cheer like she has never cheered before. That drove him to finish his race. We have been given key moments in other people’s race. Sometimes we aren’t meant to be at the finish line, we are meant to help during the struggle.

Journey Principles does this. We cheer people on wherever they need our help. If it is two thirds of the way into the race, we are there.

The most important thing to remember about suffering is the amazing teacher that it can be. Some people will turn bitter and angry when they are faced with struggles. Allow God to turn that bitterness and anger into growth, wisdom and maturity. If you are currently in a place of grief or struggle, it is worth the effort to become a student rather than a victim.

It is our sincere hope that today’s podcast will grow your mind and motivate your heart. Please comment and share with others. Michele’s story might be the exact testimony they need to hear in order to heal or at least begin that process. You can follow Michele through her blogs at michelecushatt.com as well as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Until next time, be sure to follow The Journey Principles on Facebook, Stephen Scoggins The Journey Principles and on Twitter, @Stephen_scoggin. We look forward to spending more time with you on the next show!

Meeting Michele at the SCORRE Conference gave me more encouragement and incentive to “continue the race” than I’d had in years, perhaps my entire life. That she would take time with a complete nobody like me to listen, to probe gently, to offer pragmatic and grace-filled advice, is part and parcel of all she is, as a professional richly imbued with loving wisdom, instant wit and delightful humor. I was reminded then, and whenever I see her photo or hear her voice, of Audrey Hepburn’s beauty advice: “For attractive lips, speak words of kindness; for lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.” While I have followed with intense admiration Michele’s phenomenal discipline in learning to speak again, her voice, whether spoken or written, will always be a thing of beauty because she uses it to share truth, however raw that might sometimes be. Thank you, Stephen Scoggins, for bringing Michele to us through your podcast, and Michele, again, for sharing your soul candidly and so helpfully in these two humbling and inspiring interviews. And to anyone out there struggling to find their voice, go to SCORRE. Ken Davis and his band of brilliants will blow you away.